Operation: Setting up Sephiroth
by Jediempress
Summary: Because recovering megalomaniacs need love, too. Complete.
1. Chapter 1

All right, this was originally brought to me by Kauriryu. It's evolved since then since many of you have noted that a certain character needs some… attention. So, here we go. Riku-rocks has helped greatly putting this together. This will _only_ be two parts!

Reviews are adored. Still working on ownership…….

Operation: Setting Up Sephiroth

Part 1: The Set-Up

Riku slid onto the bench opposite Zack Fair. "Hey, Zack; Cloud said you were looking for me."

"Yep," The raven-haired man threw back the rest of his whiskey. "I've got a proposition for you."

A silver-eyebrow rose in amusement. "I thought we're been over this before. I'm all for it but Cloud simply isn't one to share."

"I'll get you away from Spiky one of these days." Zack winked flirtatiously at the seventeen-year-old. He quickly sobered up. "But that's not what I wanted to talk to you about."

Riku frowned; "All right."

Wrapping both hands around his empty glass, Zack pursed his lips for a moment. With a quick breath, he grinned at the teen. "It's about your brother."

"Sephiroth?" Riku angled his head in confusion. "What about him?"

"I wanna get him laid."

Riku stared blankly at the older man for a long time. He did not seriously just say… Barking out a single laugh, Riku gave him a look. The man was completely serious.

Once certain that Riku was listening, Zack continued. "Well, I guess not just that, though getting him laid is the foremost important thing because he fucking needs it, pun intended. I just think he needs some… companionship."

"I'm going to need a drink for this conversation."

"On it;" Zack got up, taking his glass with him. He returned a few minutes later and placed a rum and coke before him as he slid back into his seat. He had gotten himself a beer.

Riku bit his lip and gave Zack an odd look. "All right, now that I'm over the shock, believe it or not, I agree. My brother has never said anything but there are times I get the feeling that he's… jealous isn't quite the right word but it's like it almost hurts him to see me and Cloud, or even you and Aerith, together."

"I noticed that." Zack nodded. "Even before the whole _mother_ thing, at odd times he would ask about my dates and how was it that I never seemed to have trouble picking up women or men. I offered a few times to hook him up with some people I thought he'd get on with, but he always waved me off stating that he had no interest in romance or sex."

"That's the impression I've always gotten from him." Riku agreed, picking up his glass. "However I also know it's a front. Sephiroth craves connection. He wants to have people close to him. It's one of the ways Jenova was able to manipulate him."

"I kinda figured that. Even if he truly is fucking asexual, which I don't believe for a minute, he at least needs someone to care for." The raven-haired man leaned back into the corner of the bench. "What we need to do is get the ball rolling, figure out who would be compatible with him and then just kinda push them together."

Riku almost spat out his drink. "_Push them together_?"

"I don't mean literally," laughed Zack with a smirk. "Even I'm not that kinky."

The teen rubbed at his forehead. "I do not get how you and Aerith stay together."

Zack chuckled lowly, a lecherous grin coming to his features. "Do you really want to know?"

"No," Riku held up a hand. "Cloud told me enough about you and I really don't want to lose my sweet, good-girl image of Aerith."

"Ah, she's my angel." Zack grinned. "…And now that one best friend has found his soul mate, it's time to work on the other best friend."

Fingers threaded through silver hair. Riku then folded his hands on the table. "Well, the first thing we have to figure out is if Sephiroth is straight or not. Then again maybe he's into both."

"Let's do this, we'll come up with a list of candidates, female and male, and we'll just go from there." Zack suggested, finishing off his beer. "Honestly, this is the part that's going to kill us. I'm fairly certain that once we get the date set up, he'll do it if we ask him _really_ nicely."

"I don't know about that but at least at that point, it will be a simple yes or no. If he isn't going to do it, it will be a flat out no." Riku countered. "But regardless, yeah, finding suitable love interests is going to be a challenge."

"Hey, Faye," Zack called across the bar. "Can you bring us another round and a pen and some paper?"

He turned his attention back toward Riku. "Okay, who do we know that's available that we know Seph can stand to be around for more than ten minutes?"

Riku blew out a breath, long bangs fluttering up. "Ah, let's see…" He frowned. "This is going to be harder than I thought."

"What is?" Faye asked, balancing a glass and bottle in one hand and a notebook in the other. She tossed the pad of paper in front of Zack and then placed the drinks down.

"We're trying to get Sephiroth a date." Zack answered, pulling the pen out of the metal binding as he flipped open the notebook.

The dark-haired woman laughed. "You serious…? Like a date, date or are you just trying to get him laid?"

Zack angled his head in mock seriousness. "There's a difference?"

"Yeah, if all you want is to set him up for a fuck, I'd say sign me up." Faye bit her lip, grinning. "I totally wouldn't mind a piece of that man."

"Ugh, stop talking about my brother like he's a piece of meat or something." Riku scrunched up his face.

"Hey, you're the one making a list of potential bed-mates, kid." The skimpily clad woman winked at him.

"…And you don't think I'm already weirded out by that?"

Zack divided the notebook page into four sections. "So, do you want us to put you down as candidate?"

"Sure," Faye flicked some short hair back. "I'd be willing to go out with him once. Let me know."

Zack nodded as he wrote her name in one of the bottom squares. She gave a little wave as she moved away and returned to behind the bar. He looked up and grinned at Riku. "Okay, here's the break down: Top two squares are women or men that we think Seph could actually form a lasting relationship with. The bottom two are the short term slash quick fucks group."

Riku blew out a breath and took a long drink. He really could not believe they were doing this. "All right, well, Sephiroth has been down here helping out a few times. Who have we seen him work with that he seemed to get along with?"

Zack pursed his lips in thought. He had not seen the former general really interact with anyone outside of the immediate group. For the most part, he seemed to keep to himself, only interacting when necessary.

"Hey, write down Lulu in the top box." Riku tapped the paper. "I've seen him talking to her a few times."

"The bondage chick?" asked Zack as he angled his head, "With all the leather straps and the stuffed Moogle?" He snorted. "Yeah, I could see Seph being into that."

"She's also a very strong personality and extremely intelligent," Riku added. "From the little I've heard about her, she would probably understand Seph rather well."

"Okay," The First Class jotted down the name. "What about that new woman? The one with the rabbit ears… She seemed to take a liking to him and he hasn't totally brushed her off yet."

Riku had to think about whom Zack was talking about for a moment, "Oh, Fran? She came with Penelo and Ash?"

"Yes."

The silvered teen nodded. "That could work. Penelo commented the other day that Fran had asked about Sephiroth."

"How are things going with Sora and Penelo?" Violet-hued eyes flicked over as Zack penciled the name.

"So far, so good;" Riku shrugged. "Sora's been really happy."

"Good, that guy he was seeing before was…"

"A complete ass...?" Riku glared at the table. "I don't know what Sora was thinking dating that guy. I still wish I had kicked his ass."

Zack chuckled, tapping the end of the pen on the table. "Leon covered that pretty well for you. He is damn protective of that kid."

"Yeah;" Riku rested his head on an upraised fist. "Let's see… every other woman I've seen Sephiroth with is already with someone. He's spoken about Kitana a few times but it's pretty obvious she's still got a thing for her ex."

"Figures," Zack grumbled. "Alright, let's just move on to guys. That should be easier."

Riku snorted. "In case you haven't noticed, Zack, there really aren't all that many gay men around here and the ones that are here are all in committed relationships."

Zack dropped the pen and pressed the back of his head to the booth wall behind it. "Ugh. This really should not be that difficult! I just want to get my best friend out among people and, with a little luck, laid."

"I came over at the wrong moment." Tifa grinned with a confused look to her eyes. "What are you two doing?"

"Zack is trying to find Sephiroth a date," answered Riku in an almost bored tone.

"Seriously?" The dark-haired woman seemed highly amused by this. "Does Reno know?"

"Reno?"

Zack laughed and lifted his head. He retook the pen and began adding the Turk's name to the casual fuck list. "He always said Seph was the only man he'd go queer for."

"Until he saw Riku," Tifa added, throwing a quick smile at the aforementioned teen. "I swear Cloud was going to kill him the night you met Reno."

Riku shook his head. "I thought Demyx was going to go after me and believe me, I would have gotten hurt if he had. He is so hung up on Reno, it's almost painful."

"…And Reno's just as bad but he refuses to see it," Tifa noted. "I'm starting to think we need to lock them up in a room for a day. Maybe if we can actually get Sephiroth to go out with him once, it would kick start those two."

"That could happen," Zack agreed. "There's nothing like the possibility of losing the object of your affection to motivate you."

Tifa glanced over the list. "I knew Faye would get herself on there. She seriously wants to jump him."

"I noticed;" Riku said dryly. "This whole thing is still freaking me out."

Tifa patted his shoulder. "I think it's very sweet you're doing this for your brother. If I think of anyone, I'll let you know."

She left them and Zack was immediately back on task. "Okay, now, we need at least two guys who might be interested in dating a gorgeous man with a minor Oedipus complex."

"Ugh, don't say it like that!" Riku's face twisted in disgust. "He's not in love with Mother!"

"How about that Gwendal guy...?" The First Class continued, ignoring the teen's comment. "They have a lot in common. Both are rather militarily minded, have dry senses of humor, and are fiercely loyal to those few they care about."

"They both knit," Riku muttered.

"Oh, well that seals the deal!" Zack exclaimed animatedly, jotting the man's name down. "All right, one down. We just need one more…"

Suddenly Zack grinned and Riku just _knew_ he was not going to like what was about to come out of the man's mouth. "What about Leon?"

Riku stared at him.

"I'm totally serious!" The older man slapped his hands on the table. "They get along abnormally well; even Zell noted that Leon talks to Seph more than he does most other people."

Riku rubbed at his forehead. "Okay, one major problem with that: Leon's straight."

"So he says but I've _seen_ how he looks at you and I've caught him eying Seph before."

"You have?"

"Yeah," Zack wrote the man's name down. "He can be converted, I know it."

Riku was highly skeptical, but decided it was not worth the effort to argue about it. He was still doubtful that they were going to be able to convince Sephiroth to go along with this insane idea. They would be lucky if he did not try to strike them both down for trying.

The silvered teen leaned back against the bench and folded his arms, "So, now what?"

"Uh, well," Zack pursed his lips a moment. Then he got to his feet and moved out of the secluded booth. "We go find the people on our list and see who's receptive to the plan."

Riku shrugged and downed the rest of his drink. He got up and followed Zack to the door. This would at least prove to be entertaining.


	2. Chapter 2

Part 2: Search and Surprise

"It's bright out today;" Zack held up a hand to shield his eyes.

"Yeah," agreed Riku. "So who do we talk to first?"

Zack shrugged, stuffing his hands in his pockets. "I don't know where to find anyone but Leon."

Riku sighed. He figured as much. "Leon's been really focusing on the castle lately so let's go over there and see if we can find any of them there."

"Work's for me." The ex-SOLDIER walked beside Riku in the direction of the postern.

"Do you seriously think this is going to work?" Riku asked after several minutes of silence.

"I hope so. It really does bother me that he's only got us." Zack paused. "Actually, it always did trouble me a lot more than I let on. He really needs someone who understands him but, honestly, I highly doubt there's _anyone_ anywhere that can do that."

"I know."

"Hey, guys." Zell waved from up ahead. The blonde stood on some scaffolding with Reno. "Where are you two headed?"

"We're looking for some people." Riku answered, stopping below them and looking up. "Either of you seen Gwendal or Fran?"

Reno removed the cigarette from his mouth. "Gwendal left with his king and the others for that meeting with King Mickey. The bunny is working at the orphanage today, yo."

"Ah," Zack pursed his lips. "Well, that rules one out."

"Rules one out for what?" Zell frowned.

"Oh, nothing important," Zack grinned, fixing his violet eyes on the red-haired Turk above. "Just a little project Riku and I are working on for his brother."

Reno narrowed his eyes. "You're doing something for Sephiroth? Care to share, yo?"

Zack shrugged. "Depending on how our next few visits go, we might be able to get you in a position with Seph that I know you've always wanted."

A red eyebrow quirked up and a smile tugged at Reno's tattooed face. "Is that so, yo?"

Zell glanced over before looking down. "I don't want to know, do I?"

"Probably not," Zack confirmed. He nudged Riku. "Come on, we've got a lot of work to do."

As they walked away, Reno called out. "You better not be teasing me, Fair! I've got blackmail on you!"

The raven-haired man shook his head and mumbled. "So he thinks."

"He uses that one on Cloud all the time." Riku brushed at his lengthy bangs.

"Oh, but Reno _does_ have blackmail on him." Zack laughed. "See, my life is an open book now. Cloud, well, he's getting there. With him it's more of a case that there are still a lot of things he doesn't remember so he's afraid of what we know that he doesn't."

Riku gave him a sidelong look but kept his mouth shut.

"So," Zack switched back to the original subject. "We go see who's at the castle since we're almost there already; then we backtrack for the orphanage to find Fran."

They continued on quietly, Riku running all of the potential reactions his brother could have to this through his head. Was it odd that every one of them was rather negative? He knew Zack had the best intentions and Riku himself would love to see Sephiroth find someone he could be happy with.

However, he did not think setting the man up was going to accomplish that. All the best couples he knew, including himself and Cloud, had simply stumbled across one another. Hell, Zack had fallen through the roof of a church when he met Aerith.

The pair entered the courtyard, immediately spotting Lulu and the Gullwings across the way. Zack brought out his trademark grin and strolled over to the four females. Riku hung back a bit, deciding he was just going to let Zack handle the negotiations.

"Afternoon, ladies."

The dark-haired woman turned toward him, angling her head. A few thin braids fell forward to settle within her ample cleavage. There was no harshness to her words despite the annoyed lilt in her voice. "What do you want?"

"How are things going over here?" Zack simply asked, looking over the small fountain they were gathered around.

"Lousy!" Rikku shouted, placing her hands on her tiny hips. "You would think there would be some coins in this thing but there's _nothing_!"

"We only agreed to work on this thing because Leon said we could have any Munny we found in it;" Paine said flatly.

Lulu sighed and brought two painted nails to her forehead. "There clearly is not anything to be found so fix the fountain so that we may move on."

Yuna smiled; "We are."

As the three sprites began doing whatever they were doing, Lulu returned her attention to Zack. She briefly flicked her eyes toward Riku, nodding to him. "Now, what actually brings the two of you out here?"

"Well, I was wondering something." Zack folded his arms that smile of his still in place. "I've seen you around talking to Sephiroth a bit."

"Yes;" The woman confirmed easily.

"You and he seem to get along pretty well."

"I like him better than most, yes." She narrowed her eyes a bit. "Where are you going with this?"

"I just wanted to find out if you had any… interest in him." Zack shrugged as if this were mere curiosity.

Lulu was quiet for a moment before she gave Riku an almost amused smile. "Does your brother know you're doing this?"

Riku snorted. "You think we'd be out here if he did?"

"No." She turned back to Zack. "Even if there was an interest, I would not discuss it with you. I have no doubts that if Sephiroth was attracted to anyone, he would find a way to address that person himself."

"Oh, I don't know about that." Zack disagreed. "He's kinda naïve when it comes to relationships and all that."

An odd smile crossed Lulu's face. "So you believe."

Both Zack and Riku frowned. She sounded like she knew something they did not. Neither one of them liked that idea.

She moved away, facing the now running fountain. "Are we finished here?"

"Yep;" The Gullwings nodded.

"Good. Let us move on then." Lulu declined her head toward the two men and she and the three flying females headed into the castle.

Zack whipped his head toward Riku. "What the hell was she trying to say?"

Riku shrugged. "No idea. Maybe she was just trying to rile us. She really is a lot like Seph."

The former SOLDIER growled. "Yeah, damn it. They would be perfect for one another."

"You heard her, she's not interested."

"Yeah, that's another down." Zack sighed. "I really don't want to have to choose between Reno and Faye. Neither of them are compatible with Sephiroth."

Riku brushed a few bangs from his face. "This really is important to you, isn't it?"

"Well, yeah." Zack sounded insulted. "I wouldn't be putting all this effort into it if I wasn't."

Riku's phone rang and he pulled it from his pocket, Zack making a face at the sappy ring tone. The silvered teen kicked him as he answered. "Hi, Cloud… I'm with Zack helping him with a project… You don't want to know… Okay...Right. Oh! Do you know where Leon is? No, we'll head over… See you in a bit… Love you."

He shut the phone and pocketed it. "Apparently, they're all at the orphanage."

"I guess we're off to there next." Zack was back to his bright self. "We've got two more candidates to check out."

--0—0—

The orphanage was a very large, old mansion on a hill. While the building itself was sound, it had to be completely gutted and rebuilt inside. It was a side-project of Leon's that they all knew he held very close to his heart and he had always wanted to make it a priority before, but there was always something more pressing to be done.

Now that a majority of the main part of town was done and the outlying areas were well in the way, the Restoration Committee was focusing much of their efforts to the orphanage. It was rapidly becoming one of those projects they actually loved doing. Everyone seemed to want to volunteer to help.

"Hey, guys!" Zack greeted loudly as he threw open the front double doors.

There were a few waves and some mumbled hellos from the half-dozen in the foyer and on the main staircase. Kenshin and Kaoru smiled at them from the stair landing. "Cloud and Sora are in the dinning hall."

"Thanks, Kaoru;" Riku grinned.

"You seen Leon around?" Zack folded his arms.

"I believe he said he would be in the library," replied Kenshin.

"Got it;" Zack nodded. "We go see what Spiky wants and then we corner Leon."

"What about Fran?" Riku lead the way around the stairs to the back of the mansion.

"She's probably with Penelo, who will be with Sora," Zack stated casually. They entered the dinning hall and he elbowed Riku with a smirk. "See? Told you…"

"Told him what?" Sora looked over from where he, Penelo, and Fran were pulling up wood floor planks.

"Zack's looking for Fran;" Riku explained as he walked over to Cloud. He had a rather intent look to his face. "You won't believe the crazy idea he has."

"Hey! You're part of this too!" Zack protested loudly. "You're just as much a part of this as I am!"

Fran had stood up and was looking at the raven-haired man suspiciously. "How do I fit into this crazy idea?"

"_Well_," Zack turned on his heel toward her. "Some teenagers let it out that you were asking about my friend Sephiroth."

She glanced back at Sora and Penelo who were now vigorously tugging at floorboards. "Did they?"

"Yeah, so I was thinking that maybe if you were interested," he approached her, running his index finger along the lengthy table that had been pushed against the wall. "I _could_ set up a meeting."

She stared at him for a moment, one long ear folding down a bit. She gave Zack an appraising look before a light smirk appeared on her face. "Trying to set up your friend?"

Sora stopped and fell on his butt. He gaped at Zack. "Dude, you're trying to hook up Sephiroth?"

Cloud pulled away from where Riku had abruptly pinned him to the wall. He actually choked. "Wait, what?"

Zack threw up his hands. "Why is everyone acting so surprised by this?"

"…Because it's _Sephiroth_," Sora answered. "I mean, I didn't think he was, you know… looking."

"He's not so far as I know." Riku tugged on Cloud's hand trying to restart whatever it was they had started in the corner. "Seph has been a bit different lately, and I agree that it could be because he's lonely."

Zack had brought his attention back to Fran, "So?"

"As flattered as I am, I think I'll pass." She turned back and knelt beside Penelo. "He's a bit young for me."

Sora scrunched up his face. "He's like, almost forty. How can he…?"

Penelo caught his eye and shook her head. The blonde girl mouthed _'don't ask'._ To the others mild surprise, he listened.

Zack sighed and tapped a fist on the table. "Oh, come on!"

"Sorry." She did not sound it.

"Fine;" Zack squared his shoulders. "Then that leaves just one and I know I can convince him."

"Him...?" Cloud echoed as Riku nibbled at his earlobe. "You're… looking for women… and men?"

"Well, since no one seems to know if Seph is straight, gay, or bi, Riku and I decided to cover all our bases."

"So who's last on your list?" Sora asked, breaking off a board and nearly whacking Penelo in the face with it, "Oh, sorry!"

She shook her head with a light smile. "I was waiting for that."

"Come on, Riku." Zack headed for the hallway. "We're got a mission to finish."

Riku groaned, resting his chin on Cloud's neck. "Do you really need me?"

"Yes! Having you there will convince him that we're serious about this!"

"Fine;" The teen turned Cloud's head and pressed a lingering kiss on him. "This shouldn't take long."

He moved to follow Zack and Sora's voice called out. "You didn't answer my question!"

"We're going to have a chat with Leon." Zack spoke over his shoulder as he and Riku walked away. A very loud _What?,_ echoed behind them.

The pair went upstairs, Zack pausing to ask Kenshin and Kaoru if they wanted to come over to his and Aerith's house for dinner the next evening. They happily agreed, Kenshin clearly stating that he would bring drinks. After a few snickers and Zack sighing that he did not understand how Aerith could not figure out the difference between sugar and salt, he and Riku continued to the library.

Leon glanced up from the desk as the two entered. He frowned when he saw the expressions each wore. "Do I even want to know?"

"Of course you do," Zack grinned. He came over and leaned his hip on the edge of the piece of furniture. "Anything going on with your love life...?"

"What?"

"You know, is there anyone your interested in? Been having any midnight rendezvous'?"

Something flickered in Leon's steel eyes that Riku was positive Zack did not notice. Leon had reacted to the second question. That was interesting….

"Why are you asking?" Leon leaned back in his chair, an annoyed look coming to his face.

Zack shrugged. "Just curious; I noticed you've been spending some time with Sephiroth lately."

"………"

Riku watched Leon carefully. There was a very subtle shifting of his presence. He had tensed a bit and a nervous energy was coming off him. He was hiding something and it had to do with Sephiroth.

Riku worried his lip a moment. "My brother has been kind of… off lately."

"He's fine."

Zack turned to face Leon, violet eyes narrowing. "Well that little remark came out fast."

"What is this about?" Leon snapped, obviously getting uncomfortable.

"Leon," Riku began carefully. "Is there something going on with my brother? You know if there is, I need to know."

"No, you don't;" the sable-haired man countered. "Sephiroth doesn't need to tell you every little detail of his life."

Zack snorted loudly. "Well, that didn't sound defensive."

"What's that supposed to mean?"

The older man folded his arms. "You got something going on with Sephiroth that we don't know about?"

Leon stared at him. "I cannot believe you just asked me that."

"Well, you're obviously hiding something having to do with him," Zack nearly shouted. "…And considering we came up here to find out if you were at all interested in Seph and you immediately got all defensive-"

"I am not being defensive," countered Leon softly but firmly.

Riku angled his head. "…But you do know something involving Seph that we don't."

Leon looked to Riku and sighed. "Yeah, I do."

"What?"

The man shook his head. "You have to ask him. It's not my place to say anything."

"Fine; As soon as we're done with you, we'll track him down and make him tell us whatever secret you're keeping," Zack declared. "Now, as to why we're here…"

"I'm not into men."

Riku quirked an eyebrow; "Are you sure about that...?"

"Yes." Leon smirked at the teen. "You were the one exception and notice nothing ever happened with that."

"Damn." Zack pouted. "Well, this little project was a complete waste of time."

Riku shrugged. "Maybe it's for the best. I mean, like I said, I don't like him being alone either but you just can't force these things."

"Yeah, I guess."

Leon glanced between the two with a slight frown. "The two of you are really worried about him."

Zack slumped into an empty chair. "Well, yeah. He's always been so fundamentally lonely."

"He really wants connection but he doesn't know how to find it." Riku blew some bangs from around his eyes. "I'm worried that if and when someone comes along, he's not going to be able to recognize it and he'll miss his chance."

Leon thought about something for a moment. He glanced up and his expression changed. "You don't need to worry about that."

Riku and Zack looked at him oddly.

"Your concern for me is appreciated." The pair turned to face Sephiroth, who stood just within the doorway. He had a strange little smile on his face.

"You okay there, Seph?" Zack asked carefully.

A hand wrapped itself around Sephiroth's arm and pushed him to the side. A head of lengthy, spiked red hair appeared from behind him. Bright green eyes glittered in amusement from a tattooed face. "He's fantastic."

Riku nearly fainted. He barely managed to sputter out, "Ax- Axel?"

"Hey, Riku; It's been awhile."

"Wait. You're dead."

Axel laughed loudly. "Yeah…? Technically, so is Seph. So is Zack here for that matter."

Zack stared. He had no idea who this guy was but did not really care at the moment. The way those two stood together…. "How long has this been going on?"

"Three weeks." Sephiroth replied. "Leon's only known about it for one."

"Were you planning on telling us about this?"

"Of course," The winged man appeared a bit hurt by the question. "However, we needed to be certain for ourselves before letting all of you know."

"Relationships aren't exactly something either of us are too familiar with," Axel added.

"So that's why you've been acting different."

"Look on the bight side," The redhead grinned obnoxiously. "You were right, only backwards."

Zack considered this for a moment before smiling. "Yeah… That makes sense."

"It does?" Leon frowned.

"Well, then." Zack stepped forward and held out his hand. "I have no idea who you are, Axel but welcome to our little group."

Axel shook his hand. "Well, thank you. From what Seph has said, we're going to get along great."

"Mother help me," muttered Sephiroth.

Zack snorted. "So you couldn't have me and Reno is too clingy, so you found a guy who looks like a combo of us both, huh?"

Sephiroth shot him a glare.

"Hey, there's more to me than my good looks," Axel protested. "I'm pretty handy with fire."

"Oh, that explains it," Leon muttered.

"Well, now that the ones who matter know about me, I'm getting some food." Axel tugged on Sephiroth's shoulder wing and winked. "Come find me later."

Sephiroth arched an eyebrow but a corner of his lip turned up.

"Anyone coming with me...?"

"I will." Zack followed the redhead out. "I want every detail, man. ...Every single little one."

"You do realize those two meeting does not bode well for you," Leon stated causally.

"Yes, but they were going to have to eventually." Sephiroth turned to Riku. "I'm sorry for not telling you sooner."

Riku had finally collected himself enough to speak coherently. "No, I understand you're reason for waiting I just…"

Sephiroth waited.

Riku tilted his head in query. "What do you see in him?"

A full smile lit Sephiroth's features. "He amuses me."

--0—0—

So who saw that coming? Huh? Huh? I bet none of you did!! Anyway, there you go. I hope you found it amusing and please leave me a little note, okay?


End file.
